Fast Food Art, Talk Show Therapy: The Impact of Mass Media on Adolescent Art Therapy

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Grenda

Electronic media enables rapid delivery and near-unlimited access to images, sounds, and information. Its techno-digital presence may shape and even disrupt adolescent art therapy processes. The article uses two case studies to show how cyberspace enters art therapy sessions and how therapy empowers adolescent clients to transform pop-culture images into personally meaningful representations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Creativity, Imagination, and Art Making

Pop Culture, Mass Information and Mass Media

A rticles Fast Food Art, Talk Show Therapy: The Impact of Mass Media on Adolescent Art Therapy Jordan S. Potash, Hong Kong Abstract Electronic media provides rapid delivery and unlimited access to pictures, sounds, and information. The ubiquitous presence of techno-digital culture in the lives of today’s adolescents may influence or contaminate the art therapy process. This article presents two case studies that illustrate how cyberspace entered into art therapy sessions and also how the process of art therapy empowered adolescent clients to transform pop culture images into personally meaningful ones. Introduction In early March 2007, I had a dream. In it I met Madonna after one of her concerts. We talked like old friends who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. We caught up on our lives, we talked about her family, and in the end I went back to her place to say hello to her husband. When I woke up, I barely remembered the dream, but gradually it crept back into my mind. Madonna? Why had Madonna been in my dream? Why such a close connection with a pop star? I thought about the dream as I walked to the subway station. Along the way, I passed a one story high billboard of Madonna, several Madonna advertisements in the subway tunnel, and large television screensin the subway station and on the street—all featuring Madonna, a ubiquitous pop culture presence, like so many other images that infiltrate our daily living. Many studies have examined the influence of popular culture and electronic media on adolescents with respect to violent behavior (Gentile, 2003; Iacoboni, 2008; Smith, Nathanson, & Wilson, 2002), sexual attitudes (Ward, 2002; Werner-Wilson, Fitzharris, & Morrissey, 2004), substance abuse (Kean & Albada, 2003), and eating disorders Editor’s note: Jordan S. Potash, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT, is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Social Work and Social Administration at the University of Hong Kong, and Lecturer in Graduate Art Therapy at George Washington University, Washington, DC. The author would like to thank the many colleagues, students, and clients who helped develop the article’s concepts since its inception in 2003. Correspondence concerning this article should be sent to the author at Jordan@jordan [potash.com](potash.com) (Field, Camargo, Taylor, Berkey, & Colditz, 1999) . If the mass media can have behavioral effects on adolescents in these areas, it likely can influence their cognitive and emotional well-being as well (Arnett, 1995; Wilson, 1988) . Pop culture is often defined as the images and sounds of mainstream culture, and modes of transmission (Reed, 1997/2007) such as movies, television, fashion, advertising, and entertainment. The mass media, which includes electronic and popular forms, are part of a techno-digital culture that has been criticized for blurring people’s perceptions of what is lived experience and what is experience that is merely presented to us (Fuery & Fuery, 2003) . A wide variety of stimuli rival for attention in adolescent interpersonal communication. The effects of popular culture and electronic media on adolescent development, imagination, and spontaneous art making are not yet well understood. In my art therapy practice, I have seen adolescent clients use images from pop culture as metaphors for their current struggles. They may use them to defend against painful thoughts and feelings, as preferred substitutes for their own rudimentary images or stand-ins when internal imagery is absent. Other times copying may simply provide a sense of mastery. Beyond the specific content or messages conveyed by mass media, I have also observed that for some adolescents instantaneous delivery promotes an expectation that all aspects of life should be accessed, retrieved, or resolved with the same lightening speed. Given the power of images, art therapists may be in a unique position to examine the impact of pop culture on adolescents and explore ways to mitigate it, if neces

FAQs

How does electronic media affect adolescent art therapy processes?

The article argues that the constant presence of techno-digital culture can influence or contaminate the art therapy process by shaping adolescents’ access to and use of media imagery.

What role does cyberspace play in the case studies?

The case studies illustrate how cyberspace enters adolescent art therapy sessions, affecting what clients bring into the therapeutic process and how they work with those materials.

How do art therapy sessions help adolescents use pop culture images?

Art therapy empowers adolescents to turn pop-culture images into personally meaningful metaphors, supporting coping and reflective engagement with their struggles.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Grenda